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Aviation History
1962
1962 - 0326.PDF
328 FLIGHT International, 1 March 1962 IN THE AIR By Mark Lambert: Number 156 of the series AVRO 748 SERIES I (Two Rolls-Royce Dart Mk 514 giving 1,600 s.h.p. each) Span, 98ft 6in; length, 67ft; wing area , 795 sq ft; fuel capacity, 1,140 gal; empty weight, 22.6141b: zero fuel weight, 33,2001b; max payload, 10,5861b; gross weight, 36,8001b. Performance: Cruising speed at max recommended power, at 34,0001b at 20,000ft, 220kt; service ceiling. 24,000ft; landing distance from 50ft at max landing weight (36,3001b), 2,160ft; take-off field length at sea level, 3,300ft; initial rate of climb, I,l30ft/min; SBAC stage length with max payload, 185 n.m.; payload for 500 n.m., 8,5001b. Avro 748 Series 1 THE way to get to know an aeroplane is to climb in and fly it until the fuel runs low—or it's lunch time—talk about it, and get right back in and fly it again, and then again if possible. All too often, time is short, weather is bad or somebody else wants the aeroplane. But, following our request to fly the Avro 748, the company telephoned to say that two days had been set aside for me, and would I be at Hatfield in the morning and be prepared to spend the night at Avro's airfield at Woodford, near Manchester, and to fly again the next morning. Jimmy Harrison, the chief test pilot, clearly intended to do the thing properly Another pilot and I duly met Harrison, his crewman and two other Avro men at Hatfield and began a flying session which spread from Hatfield to Woodford and from mid-morning on one day to lunch time on the day following. We had ourselves a whale of a time, doing everything in the book in good weather and bad, making radar-controlled and ILS approaches and flying in both IMC and VMC. The aircraft was the first production Series 1 machine, G-ARMV, destined for delivery to Skyways and powered by Rolls-Royce Dart Mk 514s giving 1,600 s.h.p. each. Cabin decor is not really my line, but the 748 was tastefully furnished for 40 passengers, with a large galley and toilets aft and a baggage room forward. Service, passenger and freight doors are provided, the last-named being large enough to admit a complete Dart power unit. Constant width and a continuous headroom of 6ft 4in, with windows opposite each of the ten four-abreast rows of seats, made the place eminently passengerworthy. More intimate details—of the fail-safe structure and so on—can be ascertained from Flight for June 3, I960. I considered the 748 purely as a pilot's aircraft and I must admit that I was tremendously impressed with its handling. It was as easy to fly, though naturally not quite so spritely, as a light twin, and as viceless as the best of them despite its 36,8001b gross weight and 95ft wing span. Handling characteristics are nowadays specified to such close limits by the airworthiness authorities that it saems to be quite a battle to come out with an aircraft that is pleasant as well as being "according to the book." I think Avro have made it. During those two days, including at least five hours' flying between two pilots, we did just about everything we could think of and the aircraft did not bite once. Jimmy Harrison threw in some spectacular demonstrations, which showed that the pleasant ness I found in ordinary manoevres extends right into the fringes of the handling envelope. First, brief notes on arrangement and systems. Flying controls are manual, with geared tabs on elevator and ailerons and a spring tab on the rudder. One of the aileron tabs also serves for trimming, and there are trim-tabs on elevator and rudder. The flaps are Avro's pride, and are certainly as effective as anything I have seen on any other type of aircraft—except the extreme case of the Otter and Caribou. They extend rearwards and downwards to 7° or 15° for take-off, 22£° for approach and 27£° for landing. At the latter setting the rear edge of the flap bends down an additional 30° to give a final drag increase. Difference between clean and "all-down" stalling speeds is a remarkable 30kt i.a.s. Hydraulics are used for undercarriage, brakes and nosewheel steering, with two pumps, several accumulators and a hand pump. Separate piping serves nosewheel steering and two separate brake systems operate the inboard and outboard pairs of the four wheel- brakes. The gear will fall free, without power assistance, and retracts forwards so that dirt does not get thrown up into the wheel bays. The Maxaret brakes are operated by toe-pedals and are designed for stopping quickly from HOkt. They are extremely powerful. Undercarriage legs are short, despite ample 2ft propeller- to-ground and propeller-to-fuselage clearance. For electrics, each engine has a 6k W generator and 22kVA alternator supplying 28V or 200V AC as appropriate for radio, lighting, flaps, windscreen, engine-intake and propeller de-icing. All supplies and services can be checked with switches and instru ments in the flight-deck ceiling. Engine-starting is by internal battery without need for an external supply. Wing and tail de-icing is by BTR Goodrich boots, cycled by compressed air. AC supp'y can be transferred from a bad engine to a good engine. A single internal tank in each wing holds 570 Imp gal, which passes through a collector box with two booster pumps to the appropriate engine. Cross-feed is provided and the engines will run at considerable heights without the booster pumps. One pump is normally kept on during cruising flight. Residual fuel has been
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